Playing cards have been used for games, gambling, education, advertising, fortune telling, political messages and other uses for hundreds of years. Decks of cards typically are stored and transported in paper boxes, bound by rubber bands, or in specially manufactured hard cases usually made of metal or wood. These methods serve to both protect the deck of cards to keep the cards together. However, paper boxes and rubber bands easily deteriorate, and hard cases often are expensive and bulky.
Once a deck of cards have been transported to a playing location, most card games require stacking of piles of discarded or sorted cards. Stacks of cards are susceptible to being knocked or blown over, which impacts play of the game. Discard trays made of a variety of materials are available to assist in the management of card piles during play, but they too usually are bulky and non-portable.
There exists a need, therefore, for a playing card container which overcomes the shortcomings of the prior art. Currently, no single product exists which can function both as a playing card case and a discard tray, can allow users to safely transport one or more deck of cards and then play a game anywhere, and is compact, portable, easily manufactured and cost-effective.